Lunacy of Blue Angel: Metroid Blue
by The Ansem Man
Summary: Samus Aran... Bounty Hunter and now part time cop, trying to make sense of a colony ruled by the mysterious Arume race. Even united with Smash Brothers and sisters, can she understand the world before her? -Episode 7: ZCC- -Blue Drop/SSB-
1. Prologue: A Galactic Excerpt

Lunacy of Blue Angel — Metroid Blue

Prologue: A Galactic Excerpt

(Disclaimer: The characters presented in this story are not owned by this author. Those honors go to several creative minds at Nintendo as well as the alien concepts drafted by one Akihito Yoshitomi. The author is a poor college student and not worth suing. However any character who only exists in this story is owned by me.

With that out of the way, I'm about to introduce this story: hopefully the only thing you'll need to read this story is some basic knowledge of the Metroid series, if that.)

Several years ago, a simple planet found itself at war against alien invaders. Galactic Federation found itself unable to interfere due to the delicate situation and the pride exhibited by both sides. These aliens manipulated a number of unstudied weapons with hallucinogenic effects, earning them a clean victory against the planet's natives. As a result, they built a space colony nearby with the spoils of the defeated planet.

This race, simply known as the Arume, are known for their highly unusual technology, their high appreciation for beauty... and the fact that all of them are female. They are well versed in various technologies and highly intelligent. To this day they have eluded Galactic Federation examination and continue to conduct experiments of varying morality. There have been reports that the Arume have visited numerous other planets and have brought back select people to this colony to aid in their research.

We can't touch them. We don't know anything about them.

We have sent an agent to this colony, but no word has been received back.

This is a growing concern; we need to act quickly before they become anywhere near as dangerous as the Space Pirates.


	2. Episode 1: The New Life

**Metroid Blue**

**Episode 1: The New Life**

Space Colony Azure... the final frontier.

Well, the final frontier for people not bothering with ship hopping across the galaxy like a Star Trek crew, anyway, which suited the residents here just fine. It was a spacious place, roughly the size of a common moon (read: Earth's). At its center was a massive city where most of the businesses resided, surrounded by the living quarters. The outskirts consisted of several subsections dedicated to helping the colony prosper, though those sections had their residents as well.

Samus Aran didn't quite enjoy her stay here, but that could be contributed more to the circumstances of her stay rather than the place itself. You see, Samus was a bounty hunter—one of the best in the galaxy in fact. She had a special suit custom tailored by a race known as the Chozo. And considering the fact she was raised with them, she also had Chozo blood within her, enhancing her physical abilities. She was more than a bounty hunter, she was a protector of the galaxy!

But then there was that one tiny problem in her most recent mission. See, she was sent to a place called the BSL labs after recovering from an infection by a nasty parasite known as the X. Not a creative name, but that's besides the point. Turns out said X had mass invaded the lab, and furthermore the scientists had been secretly raising Metroids—the most dangerous creatures in the galaxy. So Samus did this little thing and pretty much sank the entire lab and blew up a planet with it. It was for the safety of the Galaxy, right?

The guys at Galactic Federation didn't believe her entirely though. Even a protector of the galaxy isn't above the law, so they nixed her suit and sent her here for guard duty.

And_here_ was smack dab in the middle of Ozora City, and aside from the occasional ruffian she rarely encountered many problems. The only other thing she ever did was menial labor at some parts of the edge of the city. This life was the _pits_ (no pun intended).

There were many constants in Samus's life, but today was the day that things changed.

There was a thunderous crash, followed by an equally thunderous roar. And no thunderstorm in sight.

"And here I was thinking this job was going to get _boring_," Samus Aran muttered. The police suit she was in wasn't bad at all. "What the hell was that?"

With a radio headpiece attached to her ear, she was about to radio for a status report when a robotic voice cut in. "My lady."

"Adam?!" Samus exclaimed. The A.I her current ship was equipped with had reached her? _Here_, through this channel?!

"I've received reports of a dangerous bioform in your vicinity." The A.I. spoke. "I've been authorized to give you back your suit."

"Wait_what_." This wasn't even possible.

"Your suit. You heard me, Lady."

"You mean Galactic Federation is actually letting me use it that soon?" Considering the massive tribunal they held over her decision to wreck expensive research AND a planet at the same time...

"There's no time for questions lady. The bioform is headed right in your direction."

"Got that much," Samus muttered. "Speaking of which, how am I going to activate my suit so far away from my ship?" There'd be no time for her to get to the ship, tucked away on the other side of the city, and get back to deal with whatever threat she was supposed to counter next.

"Remember that watch Galactic Federation gave you?"

"This thing...?" Samus glanced at the watch on her left wrist. The damn thing was tacky, almost looking like some sort of cheesy futuristic compass. While she didn't like it, Samus was never one to rank looks over functionality. The thing actually _was_ damn useful for a watch.

"To put it simply, it allows you access to your suit. To activate it, simply click it and shout, CHOZO SUIT ACTIVATE!" If Adam weren't an A.I, scientists would have been baffled at his ability to deliver that line with a straight face.

"...seriously?"

"...Chozo suit activate." Indeed, as soon as those words were uttered, a flash of blue light consumed Samus. Curling halfway into a ball, she found her suit slowly building itself on her. The familiar exoskeleton complete, and she was once again within the slimline designs of her suit.

"...you seriously did it. Not very much excitement, but still... I thought you wouldn't."

"WHY YOU LITTLE—" The stamping of gargantuan feet interrupted Samus's would-be tirade, revealing the visage of a hulking creature resembling a cross between a turtle and a dragon. His maw was filled to the brim with deadly teeth, with claws equally as sharp. There was going to be ass kicking, and too bad for Samus he picked her to be on the business end of it. In her suit, she scanned the beast, revealing him as one King Bowser.

_'A mutant turtle with dragon DNA, Bowser holds massive physical strength. His claws can tear through steel and he can also breathe fire. Subject is also capable of human speech and some shamanic abilities, but is currently too frustrated and angry to use them.'_

"Bowser, huh?" Samus thought out loud, her weapon trained on his face. Bowser only answered with an angry roar. "I take it you don't like this place. Too bad for you."

Before either combatant decided to advance on the other, Samus did a quick check on her inventory. "Only double jump, morph ball, bombs and power shot online? They _really_ gimped me," Bowser charged, but Samus strafed out of harm's way. "Still," she aimed her weapon back at the King of Koopas. "Impossible isn't in the Chozo vocabulary." She fired a few shots at the back of his head, but that only served to annoy the monster before her. Bowser whirled back around, roaring yet again. Samus took aim and fired a shot directly into his mouth.

Bulls-eye!

Bowser flinched mid-roar. Samus smiled behind her visor. _Got you now_, she thought, taking aim and firing a few more shots into his mouth for good measure. Bowser stumbled backwards a bit in pain, snarling before he gained his strength back. He suddenly puffed up, and breathed a steady blast of fire. Samus dodged immediately, barely avoiding the licking flames. Samus used her inertia to swing around a nearby street lamp and land a kick to Bowser's face. The king stumbled back, much to Samus's slight surprise—it was rare that she used physical attacks.

The bad news: that kick was but a glancing blow. Bowser faced Samus again, a grin on his face. A powerful swipe collided with Samus, and she was in Bowser's clutches. _Oh this _can't_ be good..._ Samus tried to get her gun arm free, but the King of Koopas was having none of that, oh no! _If only I could... wait, what the f—_ Instead of having her for dinner like she thought he would, Bowser took to the air and body-slammed her into the ground. Samus bounced up painfully before crashing into the street once more. She struggled to rise as Bowser lunged toward her again, only avoiding a claw-induced death by rolling out of harm's way at the last minute. Ah, thank the Chozo for morph ball!

Bowser tried again, raking his claws in an attempt to rend Samus into kibbles and bits. However, his attacks were useless, as they just couldn't hit. The Koopa roared again.

Big mistake.

"Eat it!" Samus roared, firing several shots into Bowser's gaping mouth. The beast stumbled back, roaring in pain and agony. Despite her best efforts though, Samus could not bring the king down.

Eyes livid with fury, Bowser stamped the ground, preparing his claws to strike again.

No such luck—the female calvary was here! White-haired females, decked in white, almost swimsuit-like suits and black sleeves, swarmed in. Armed with tazers, they immediately pulled in with a deadly efficiency and shocked the big Koopa into submission. Samus only stared in surprise—where did this division come from and why did it take so long for them to get here? Her employer would hear about this...

"Thanks for holding him out for us." One of them spoke, turning to Samus. "We've been looking for this bastard for a good while now. How he managed to stay low profile still baffles us."

"Why... you... little...!" Bowser spoke for the first time, surprising Samus slightly. Trying to rise once more, he snarled. "Damn you... Arume... cretins!" But the last of his strength left him, and Bowser was out cold.

There was a moment of silence as the women rounded up the poor King of Koopas and dragged him back to places unknown.

"Arume...?" Samus blinked. Then she remembered they had no clue she was Samus, and furthermore would probably be suspicious of her absence. "Ah crap..." She dashed back into another alleyway to get back to her normal self.


	3. Episode 2: This World I'm In

Metroid Blue

Episode 2: This World I'm In

"Well, well, Samus Aran," There was that calm, almost disinterested greeting again. Samus learned to really dislike these visits to her current employer. It wasn't even the fact that she disliked the woman, an outwardly teenager-like person decked in pure white, matching her side-ponytail hair. No, what Samus disliked most was that piercing stare that woman possessed, her pupils being a well of blue instead of black. As Samus entered, the woman didn't hesitate in locking eyes with Samus and attempting to peer straight into her soul. All bosses wishing to be as intimidating as she was should take notes. "It was a shame. You missed the assault from the Koopa King. It was by fortune a suited bounty hunter defeated him, but alas the person split before we could ask him or her any more questions. You didn't see someone like this, did you?"

Samus, uncertain whether or not to admit she was the one to defeat Bowser, then decided to keep up a masquerade. Bowing slightly, she answered, "My apologies, Lieutenant Zael. I saw someone like that, but only for a fleeting moment. The person disappeared before I could do anything else." However, something was nagging at Samus, and badly. "Why was this King Koopa here?"

"Frustration, according to the experts," The woman known as Zael answered. "We've been foiling some minor assaults from his cronies for some time."

"I mean, why is he here on this colony?"

"...hmph. Asking a bit much, are we?" Zael looked at Samus through a wry grin. The Chozo-raised woman bit back some apprehension, but apparently the boss saw right through that—she simply laughed. "This colony is largely an immigration project. People from all over the galaxy call this place home, though unfortunately this includes brigands like him. To put troublemakers and evildoers in their place, is that not the reason you joined this brigade?"

"It is." Samus admitted wearily, despite this being mostly a lie.

"Protect those people, Aran. That is all I ask." Zael shooed her away. "You are dismissed."

--

Samus heaved a sigh as she finally returned to the sanctity of her apartment.

"Samus." Adam addressed the bounty hunter from her computer. Ah, nice how a bit of hard work and subterfuge pays off, huh? Using some of her funds discreetly Samus had finally purchased a decent computer in which to host Adam's AI in when she was far away from her ship for an extended time, like she was now. "Good job in taking care of that Koopa King."

"Adam, something's up." Samus ignored the praise and cut to the chase.

"Is it now?" The AI questioned.

"Yeah. What business does a turtle dragon have in a largely human colony? Wait, I take that back. What is somebody like Bowser doing on an Arume colony? That's what they call themselves, right? I knew they own this place, but I've been seeing more non-Arume around here as well."

"Very observant, Samus." Adam answered. "Galactic Federation was wise in giving you another chance."

"What does that mean?!" Samus's temper threatened to come back.

"Galactic Federation sent you here for a reason, of course." Adam responded.

"...Knew it," Samus muttered, resting her face on a balled fist. In the back of her mind, she knew there was no way Galactic Federation was going to leave her out of action for long. But... "Considering what they tried to do with the Metroids in BSL, why should I help them?"

"From what they have instructed me, their reasoning is twofold. First, because they know it's in your blood to protect the galaxy." Samus felt a small twinge of pride swelling up within her. She was glad that the Galactic Federation had at least recognized her reasoning for her actions. "The Arume could possibly be a threat towards the galaxy at the current rate. The Galactic Federation has reason to believe that they may be doing more dangerous ideas within this colony. Seeing as they distrust men, you are more than an ideal candidate for discovering what they're up to."

"Is that so?" Samus remarked thoughtfully. "You have my interest. What's the second reason?"

"50 million space credits if you succeed. Plus expenses paid for you to customize a new ship."

"I'm already bought." Greed makes the universe go round, even for the good guys.

"That's good to hear, Lady," Adam monotoned, apparently expecting this response. "Since you're off tomorrow, perhaps then would be a good time to investigate."

"I've already considered that," Samus answered. "Investigating as I am now might not end well if I'm caught. Luckily, nobody has put me as the woman inside the suit today." Samus didn't know what to think of her suit actually being the trump card this time around, but hey, whatever actually works...

That train of thought got derailed with a resounding -CRASH-.

Samus reacted immediately. Whipping out her Paralyzer gun, she shot up, looking for the source of the noise. "What was that?!"

"Hang on, Samus, I'm scanning the database for this apartment complex..." Adam began, and as all AIs were, had already began scanning the surroundings. There was a moment of silence, and then... "Samus, it appears your next door neighbor is having... technological troubles," Adam _almost_ sounded wry. "Perhaps you should lend a hand?"

"Hmph, fine." Samus furtively left her apartment, moving towards the source of the noise—right next door. Slowing to a sneak step, Samus moved in front of the offending door. She rapped the door twice. "Hey! What's going on in there?!" She shouted.

No answer, but she did hear a slight grunt of confusion. That wasn't enough to judge the situation, so Samus tried again. "What's going on in there?!"

Still no verbal answer—directed at her, that is. "Everything is alive in this place, it seems..." came the muted voice on the inside.

Samus had enough—that door was going DOWN. But before she could even move to disable the lock on the door, it opened. Samus found herself staring at eyes of cold steel instead of just plain cold steel... or at least it seemed that way. This blue-haired man before her regarded her with a bit of confusion before saying. "Do people always barge into other people's rooms in this place?"

"...no," Samus answered after a brief awkward silence. "But things breaking and exploding next door might tempt them. Speaking of which," She looked down at his right hand to see he was carrying a powerful sword, with a black hilt and an off-gold blade. "...is that a_ sword_?"

"Yeah," The blue-haired man answered, looking at it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I don't see too many things around here that could count. It makes more sense than the rest of this place."

"Really?" Samus remarked. "By the way, what did you _slay_ with that thing?"

He looked away with a bit of shame. "It was an accident. The voices from that metal creature surprised me, and instinct kicked in."

It took all of Samus's mental power to keep her palm from smacking her face. "Let me see it..."

--

"You cleaved a telecom device _in half_," Samus muttered, looking at the mess. The small device resembled a computer screen raised onto a metallic mound. Unfortunately it, as well as the thin table it was standing on, was cleanly cut in two. Examining the destroyed objects, she added, "Those things are supposed to be durable. I can't salvage a thing from here."

"So that's what that thing is called?" The blue-haired man asked. "I really don't know how anything works around here."

"Huh? Wait a second..." Samus stood up, looking sternly at the man before her. "You mean to tell me you don't know how any of the technology in this room works?"

"...Nope!"

"How'd you even survive?"

"...I was brought here against my will," The man answered. "and I have no way of getting back to the world I hail from."

Samus stood stunned from this revelation, her emotions moving from shock to pity.

"I was once a member of the Griel Mercenaries back on the continent of Tellius on my home world. When a neighboring country in the area invaded the kingdom and killed my father, I moved to combat them. This blade, the Ragnell," He held up the blade in all of its glory. Samus swore it glistened like it was showing off. "Was blessed by the goddess to give me strength and smite my enemies. But... the blessings of the gods couldn't save the people captured by those females from the sky... or so I believed."

"Females from the sky?" Samus questioned. "...the Arume?"

"That's what they called themselves. I made pursuit of them in their airborne ships... I had no idea how long I was in there, but apparently they were aware of my presence. Despite my efforts to fight them back, it turned out that they had merely lured me onto the ship, as a small faction of them had been impressed with my skills. With no means of returning to my home, I had no choice but to cooperate." The man finished.

Samus crossed her arms. Apparently, they shared something in common. "We all have our sordid stories of why we're here. I'm not exactly here of my own free will either."

"Really?"

"Let's just say this is... community service," Samus replied, and with that she decided to send the conversation back to its older direction. "And by the way, the technology here's expensive, so don't go slaying it. You're also lucky I've got a spare telecom back in my room, I can have you hooked up fairly quickly."

"What does 'hooked up' mean?"

"Connected online to this colony's database."

"...slow down. I have _no idea_ what any of that means."

Samus twitched in frustration, before taking a deep breath. "Oh boy, this could take a while..."

--

Samus returned to her apartment three hours later. Tired but somewhat amused, she sunk down onto her bed.

"Samus. What took you?" Adam asked.

"I just took our next door neighbor for a grand tour of nearly every object in his house." Samus muttered. "It was a miracle Ike lasted this long. I'm not even sure how he got food."

"...Ike?"

"That's what he said his name is. Poor guy's from a completely different galaxy. The Arume tricked him into living here because he can smite things with a holy sword." Samus paused for a moment. "...I'm going to go investigate first thing tomorrow. I get the feeling that Ike is just one of many forced to live here."

"You do that, Samus. I will research and give you a starting point tomorrow."

With that, Samus turned over to take a rest. "Night, Adam."

&&&&

(This ends this update; hopefully you'll all enjoy this story as I move forward. Constructive criticism appreciated, of course.Tune in next time to see Samus earn herself a new archrival! Our the uh-oh.  
Also note how I hate it when this uploader will randomly glue words together, and I won't catch it until after the story's been posted...)


	4. Episode 3: With Enemies Like That

**Metroid Blue**

**Episode 3: With Enemies Like That, Who Needs Friends?**

"Samus," Adam said, suddenly breaking through the silence. Morning wasn't quite there yet; with the artificial light cycle only beginning it had yet to chase the darkness from Samus's entire apartment complex, let alone her small apartment.

Samus finished typing in some commands to her suit as she addressed the AI. "Adam?"

"Galactic Federation has prepared some upgrades for your suit."

"You mean they're giving me some weaponry _back_." Samus added in wryly. However, her wit gave in to confusion. "But why exactly are they doing this again?"

There was a bit of an awkward pause. "While that is true, GF _is_ giving you updates. They have prepared an experimental technology that will allow you to absorb certain technology. It uses the same principles of your charge shot, so you may find operating that differently. We don't know all of of technology the Arume are playing with, so managing to adapt to anything that they could throw at you would be key."

"Not a bad idea then," Samus agreed before standing up and swiping both her helmet and a small, PDA like device. Walking over towards a wall, she put the PDA device in, opening it up and revealing a hidden compartment. Putting on her helmet, Samus put her arm cannon inside the compartment, locking it in. "Let's see what you have."

At this, the data Adam promised invaded Samus's suit, washing it in light. The technology of the Chozo suit began to adjust itself accordingly. Even without doing anything, Samus could already feel that glorious return to power... almost made her feel like a super villain!

_Except not really_.

When all was said and done, Samus unhooked her gun and with a few taps quickly checked her suit's new capabilities. "Super Missiles back online, Charge shot back online, wow, GF is getting generous."

"This ends GF's generosity, as they can't safely incorporate any other technology into that suit just yet," Adam instructed. "Be warned, that if your mission is compromised, there could be repercussions on a galactic scale. Do you understand Lady?"

"No pressure whatsoever, got it," Samus answered with a straight face. Only a faint grin managed to break onto her face before she finally put on her helmet, ready to take on the world. She began to walk outside, but stopped as if she had missed something important. "Adam?"

"Yes?"

"If at all possible, make sure Ike doesn't slay any more household appliances," Samus waved before marching off outside.

"...Understood."

* * *

It was almost like a cycle.

Drop into the heart of darkness, use your wits to survive the elements, find out what's going on in the world (or worlds) around you, slay the bosses, then make your escape as something explodes. That's how it always was with Samus... hell, she could probably concoct a world-winning video game formula with that kind of thing. Even when the settings were different—from her childhood training grounds in Zebes to the vast network of Phazon-cursed societies in the GF Galaxy, there was always a system of lonely places with history told between the hordes of monsters and Space Pirates that had invaded their depths. Even now, despite this being in the same colony where she now lived and worked, Samus had that same feeling of being the lone warrior between destruction and salvation.

Hey, that's what the Chozo raised her to be, right?

So it was no surprise that deep within this installation, Samus was once again alone, with nothing but her training and a weapon of mass destruction attached to her right arm. She walked cautiously, keeping herself alert for any type of danger.

The dark blue hue of the installation was offset only by the glow of technology. It appeared that the Arume were wise and didn't waste energy, at least—Samus had to applaud them for that.

Scans confirmed what the lack of lights only hinted at—nobody's home, aside from a few guards on the outside and some patrols further back, and none were the wiser of her intrusion. Satisfied with that, Samus set out to go find some sort of clue on what the Arume were up to.

Although Samus was unaware, it would be keen to note that a small shape was also scampering about, lost, confused, and yet certain that Samus may know the way.

Samus kept alert within the pseudo-darkness, moving forward until she reached the end of a hallway, and a secured door with it. "Knew it couldn't be that easy," she muttered as scans revealed that her current weaponry wasn't capable of blowing the door open. Samus looked around, finally finding an open vent. "Or maybe it is..." She leapt into the vent and immediately curled into a Morph Ball. She made her way through the vent, finally finding another open hole and dropping inside.

Samus returned to her normal form, and much to her horror, she dropped right into a nightmare!

Humans. Other creatures. Lots of them. Encased in glass pods.

Samus herself wasn't so much horrified as she was concerned... this type of thing was nothing new, but still very wrong. Her scanners got to work.

_'Scans indicate this creature is in cryogenic sleep. There are several body-enhancing drugs detected in its blood system.'_

_'This human's anatomy was recently altered; diminished amounts of testosterone suggest this female was once male.'_

Samus felt dark emotions growing within her heart. Confusion and rage grew slowly as she made her way through the laboratory, each consecutive scan telling a variant of the first two—and not all of them were alive. Worse yet, she spied no Arume amongst those sealed in the tubes. These people were mining other creatures and twisting them for their own wishes!

"Who are these Arume... to play with people's lives?" Samus asked nobody in particular.

Funny thing, that. Nobody in particular had an answer! "It's beauty. We seek... beauty."

Only now did Samus notice the person behind her. She whirled around immediately, her weapon trained on the potential foe before her.

She was definitely Arume, with the telltale dark blue eyes, peach skin, and stark white hair, though something seemed vaguely off. She stood barely shorter than Samus, with her hair not quite reaching the middle of her back and deep blue eyes. She wore what looked like a rarer form of the grayish-white Arume uniform—a white, almost swimsuit-like one piece suit with her belly button exposed. Unlike the others she had seen before this one had a cloak of sorts, and fingerless gloves. She also had an unusual and lengthy blue scarf wrapped about her neck. "My, my, a bold intruder in our depths," the Arume stopped moving but didn't seem fazed by Samus's gun in the slightest. "Are you here to bring justice?"

"Damn right I am," Samus answered plainly. "And since you were so kind to answer my question, what the hell do you mean by 'beauty'?"

"Just that," The Arume answered calmly. "Even within the horrors of war, even within a human's bloodlust, there is beauty. We are here to build upon it."

"And by making others your playthings? I call bullshit." Samus countered, temper rising slightly, but still in control.

Somewhat disappointed that Samus still had her at gun point, the Arume spoke again. "You should put that thing..." Samus was horrified to see the Arume suddenly close the gap between them before she was even aware of her movements. "...down," With that last word, the Arume grabbed Samus's arm cannon, lifted her and slammed her into the ground.

Samus clenched her teeth despite having the wind knocked out of her. _Argh, damn! Since when did your average Arume develop super strength?_ The bounty hunter grunted before sweeping her legs and kicking up, surprising her assailant. "Ha!" Samus shouted, suddenly shoving her arm cannon forward like a battering ram.

The Arume caught it.

"Shit." Samus cursed her luck.

The Arume rewarded Samus by easily swinging her around and throwing her into a wall; the Chozo warrior slammed into it so hard she didn't even fall yet. Groaning from the pain, Samus finally did the smart thing and made a scan of her new foe.

'Subject is an Arume, water-based but very human-like creatures with some telekinetic abilities. This particular Arume exhibits superhuman strength and apparently a reluctance to fight—even so, tread cautiously. The different dress suggests she is of a higher position than other Arume.'

"Weary intruder, there is no need to fight," The Arume maiden spoke. She swept a bow. "My name is Lirael, I run the laboratories on this colony. Perhaps—"

Now she'd done it; Samus's rationality about the situation was slipping._ Don't care_, Samus pushed herself off the wall, aimed, mentally added, _...just die please_, and shot a single super missile in the direction of the now named Arume Lirael.

Lirael easily swatted it away, causing the missile to explode harmlessly somewhere else in the room. "How rude!" She objected rather softly.

"You started it," Samus muttered. "I'm finishing it." She launched two more missiles, but Lirael simply evaded them, dodging and weaving with ease. The Arume leapt into the air with grace before sailing towards Samus with a mighty kick. Samus evaded at the last second, causing Lirael to simply crash feet first into the ground with enough strength to crack it. Samus aimed once again, this time firing off...

...a single weak charge beam shot?! Lirael giggled and merely tilted her head out of harm's way.

_Dammit, this was what Adam was talking about?! I can't rapid fire anymore!_ Samus's mind raged. Much too bad for her, since Lirael took a page from a certain F-Zero racer and simply smashed into her with a powerful knee. Samus sailed through the air again, but this time righted herself in mid-air and landed on her feet, skidding back towards another wall.

"Please stand down," Lirael's voice was slightly and strangely pleading.

"Only if you cut the experiments on these people," Samus countered, weapon still trained on the girl.

"I can't do that. These people here, the people living outside, they're necessary for this project to succeed. As much as I don't like to see the seeds of war planted, they're necessary for us to bring our plans to fruition."

"I guess we'll just have to disagree on that, huh?" Samus countered. She began to charge her power beam.

Lirael rushed her in an attempt to interrupt the attack, but Samus moved out of harm's way just in the nick of time, stopping the charge. Much to her surprise though, the full charge was still shining on her cannon arm. "That's nice," Samus noted. She turned back to Lirael. "I guess I'll blast you after all!" Samus fired a massive ball of energy, one stronger than her usual charge shot blast.

Too bad it was slow enough for Lirael to simply sidestep it.

"They really, _really_ gimped me!" Samus complained as Lirael proceeded to slam her into the ground for the third time. Samus clenched her teeth in pain—her energy tanks were getting low. This new foe was much too strong for her as she was now—all of her current weapons systems were far too slow to deal with her. This new foe was also... a bit too close for comfort.

Lirael was on top of Samus, her face mere inches from the bounty hunter's helmet. Lirael smiled. "Oh my, a pretty woman under that suit? I do wonder what _she'd_ say about this..."

_Wait, what?!_ Samus tensed. The way that girl stared into her eyes, it was far worse than even Lieutenant Zael's... there was something... a _desire_ of sorts in that woman's eyes. Could she tell who she was under the mask? "What's your name?"

Samus wasn't sure at all if she wanted to be on the receiving end of that desire, if she was reading that right. She wasn't even sure how to answer that question.

But before the Unresolved Sexual Tension could go any further, someone had something to say about it: "Pika pi!"

Both girls looked up to see a strange animal illuminated by the faint light of the doorway. A yellow mouse-like creature, with red cheeks, brown stripes on its back and a jagged tail, stared boldly at the two, with its cheeks aglow with electricity. "Pika!"

"It's that—" Lirael started again, but the electric animal was already charging towards them. With a powerful dash it smashed straight into the Arume's face with a single-minded fury of a vengeful predator. Lirael tumbled backwards from the blow, freeing Samus from her strange grip.

"Pikachu!" The creature called. It took a glance at the recovering Samus, and seeing as she was alright, went right back to hissing at Lirael.

"The electric rat..." Lirael said with a mix of contempt and sadness. She cupped her hands and brought them down like a club in an attempt to smash the electric mouse down. It wasn't happening, obviously, the creature evaded it with ease. A second and a third smash got the same results.

The fleet-of-foot creature snarled, its cheeks glowing dangerously. "Pikaaaa CHUUUU!" A blast of lightning shocked the Arume, and she screamed before crumpling into the ground.

Samus, confused by the matter, scanned the newcomer.

'_Subject: Pikachu. Mouse creature capable of firing electricity from its cheeks. On its native world there are those that keep them for pets or use them for battle; this one is perhaps the strongest of its warrior cousins. Subject is incredibly agile and has intelligence equal to that of a human child. Do not underestimate this creature due to its small size._'

"Huh, learn something new every day." Samus stared at the strange electric mouse before her, apparently it had a bigger grudge against the Arume than she did.

However, it looked like the other Arume had finally picked up the fighting going on in the lab, and as such the guards finally swarmed in. Samus mentally cursed. cursed as they surrounded the three of them, their weapons aimed at her and the Pikachu.

"Freeze!" One shouted.

"End this rebellious madness..." Lirael rose again, her blue eyes weary.

Pikachu snarled, though it appeared somewhat cowed from being surrounded. Samus however, assessed the situation. At her current health there was no damn way she could take them all on and win, but escape was very much possible. She could probably survive a hit or two with no permanent damage, get the hell out of dodge while everyone was distracted...

Pikachu was losing the gusto it had when it first came in, and Samus noted this.

... maybe it wasn't time for him to give up the good fight just yet.

"Looks like I screwed this one up, but..." She turned to Pikachu, the creeping grin hiding under her helmet. "I like your spirit, little guy. Don't lose it yet, you're coming with me." In one smooth movement, Samus reached out and jerked Pikachu by the tail, pulling it out of danger as she launched a missile into the face of a random Arume guard. As she scooped up the slightly irritated Pikachu, Samus saw Lirael try and sprint towards her, but the fallen Arume guard somehow rolled right into her path, causing the poor woman to crash. The resulting discord was enough to keep her from suffering an assault from Lirael... just as planned!

...Maybe!

Samus blasted her way out, moving through the now lit corridors and picking up speed. Any Arume that dared block her escape got a super missile to the face, though how they weren't blown to smithereens evaded Samus at the moment. During the mad sprint for freedom, the bounty hunter cursed her flubbed mission—she got the information she had wanted, but now it was guaranteed that her suited form would become a wanted criminal! And to make matters worse, she still understood little about what the Arume were working towards, and why she was carrying an electric rat that was undoubtedly an Arume nightmare.

Then again, she's been through worse.

Samus finally found a back door, kicking it open without breaking her stride and hopping out into a back alleyway. No longer eclipsed by the shadows of the Arume, Samus quietly shed her suit; it disappeared in a slow flash of light.

Fortune hadn't completely forsaken her. How about that.

She looked down, seeing the exhausted electric rat in her arms. There was no mistaking it—even as heartless as she sometimes made herself out to be, there's no way she could leave the poor thing on its own. "I've got to find you a place to stay, or at least figure out how to watch out for you," she muttered, and with that, walked into the streets, dragging the poor Pikachu all the way back home.

* * *

(With finals approaching at the time I write this, I'm going to be focusing solely on that, plus my laptop might need repairs, so don't expect anything until the end of the month. Sooner might happen if you're lucky.

While I do not own the Arume, the OCs established here are in fact my idea.

Constructive criticism always appreciated, and flames will be used for s'mores. Or something equally tasty.)


	5. Episode 4: Sound Advice

**Metroid Blue**

**Episode 4: Sound Advice**

"Adam," Samus stormed in, clutching Pikachu tightly and immediately sitting at her computer. "I need more information on electric mice. Hello Ike." She addressed the man sitting beside her for no reason at all.

Ike waved meekly at the harried woman that had sat beside him. _Wait a minute_...!

"Adam, why is Ike here?!" Because you _don't_ touch yourself at night.

"Lady, I do believe I was instructed to keep Ike from slaying technology. Thus, I found it easier to monitor him here as opposed to his own apartment. I could also guide him in learning more technology found in this world. As for your… Pikachu, I'm looking into the matter now."

Ike could only stare in amazement at the blinking lights and words that flashed across that computer thing Samus had, and furthermore her conversation with it seemed much like a conversation with a common person, too! "Samus, are you actually keeping a man inside that machine?" Ike asked. "How does that even work?"

"That's not a man in that machine," Samus explained curtly. "He's an A.I., or Artificial Intelligence."

"That's what it… or he said," Ike answered, blinking. "But I don't believe it, he's so human-like. Haven't seen forms like that since the laguz…" He finally noticed Pikachu. "What's that creature?"

"All I know is that he's a 'Pikachu', and I don't have a damn clue on why I brought him home," Samus answered. "Adam, did you get anything yet?"

There was a breif moment of silence before Adam replied grimly, "It's not good news, Samus," That brought a bit of tension. Adam continued, however. "I have a warrant for the capture of an 'untamed, orphan electric creature'. It's been causing trouble for the Arume before you even crossed paths with it."

"It's been split from its parents or anything it would call family?" Samus asked rhetorically, before folding her arms. "It looks like it's been pretty vengeful, hasn't it?"

"Speaking of wanted criminals…" Adam pulled up a wanted poster… of Samus in her suit. "I take it you didn't get too far today, did you?"

Ike only blinked in confusion, but Samus merely clinched her teeth. "Oh, I actually got pretty far, but then I found trouble. Her name is Lirael. She runs the show here, experimenting on people and creatures however she likes. I don't understand how she's so… nice about it. Her so-called kindness disturbs me most of all."

"Nice?" Ike blinked again, but he was temporary ignored like two-hour-old-and-somewhat-unimportant news on the internet.

"Even so, Samus, you can't afford to make enemies just yet." Adam instructed. "You're not at optimum strength, or even anywhere close to understanding just what the Arume are up to."

Samus regressed into her thoughts with those words. Being hotheaded and angry about things only gave you so many cool points; afterwards it only got you on the receiving end of a smackdown. Indeed, those actions may have complicated matters…

…or it could have just made things easier. "Actually," Samus piped up. "I just thought of something. So far, nobody's put a name to my head yet. Nobody outside this room knows I wear that suit…" She turned to Ike, who looked like he had just wandered into a high court conspiracy. Samus smacked herself. "Good god, I just screwed up."

"Explain to me what's going on," Ike said seriously.

Samus took a deep breath and sighed. "Fine." So she started from the beginning: her status as a bounty hunter and her recent adventures up to this point, as well as her current mission. Ike for once, did not ask ten million questions during the tale.

"I think I get what's going on here then," Ike said. "You're trying to figure out why we're all here. Can't fight that." The beginnings of a smile form on his face—it's the first time Samus ever saw him do that in the short time she's known him. "Okay then, I'll keep out of your way. If you want my help though, I'll give that for a price."

"Really," Samus raised an eyebrow, returning that almost-smile.

"I _did_ say I was a mercenary." Ike answered gruffly. "And considering where I am now, I could sure use something."

"In that case, you'll be first on my list if I need somebody, or something, skewered with a sword," Samus said wryly.

Before she could even go back to asking Adam anymore questions, the AI had beaten her to the punch. "Samus, I found something of interest. Someone in this very apartment complex hails from the same planet the electric creature comes from. He lives two floors directly below us. He may know something about the Pikachu you have."

"Does he?!" Samus stood up. This seemed to stir the small creature from its slumber. Its ears pricked before staring sleepily at Samus. It took a small sniff before recognizing the woman that held it. Happy, the Pikachu scampered up and perched itself on her shoulder. Samus sagged, though whether it was from frustration or awe at the creature's sudden loyalty (and weight on her shoulders), she didn't know. "Well, at least I'll figure out how to raise him, if he's adamant on staying. I'm gone. Like five minutes ago." Samus moved towards, the door, but then remembered Ike again. "Oh, and Adam, please let Ike back into his house." And with that, Samus and her Pikachu companion left.

Ike, alone with the machine again, stared in silence before he rose again, leaving for the door. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't paying attention when Samus left, so he had no clue one how to leave! Then a button caught his eye. He reached out to touch it…

"That button doesn't let you out." Adam rang out.

Ike stopped for a moment before turning to the computer. "Are you sure?"

"Unless you want five lasers to simultaneously melt your heart like the breath of a dragon," Adam answered, using a simile more familiar to the swordsman, "I'd suggest you don't touch that button." Ike sighed in defeat. "Okay, which button lets me out?" It was gonna be a long night…

* * *

Samus and her new compatriot headed downstairs. To no one's surprise, the outside hallways of the apartment stood fairly empty. The bright hues only chased away the creepy parts of this place, it did nothing on loneliness.

However, once reaching the second floor, Samus came upon an interesting sight. Two Arume, decked in the same white garb she had seen back when she fought Lirael, were just leaving her destination. Apparently slightly frustrated, they ignored her as they stormed by. "That boy's too stubborn!" One groused. "We SHOULD be allowed to use force!"

"But Master Commander wouldn't like it." The second reasoned with the first. "Said if they don't believe in it…" That conversation was lost as they trailed out of sight.

Always new developments, Samus thought as she and Pikachu headed towards the door once more. They came to a stop, and Samus briskly knocked on the door.

The door slid open, but no human greeted Samus. Instead, one very orange and very angry dragon leered at her. It was so large, its wingspan wasn't even visible in the doorway. Pikachu however, recognized it, with a slightly shocked "Pika!" and a tiny finger pointed towards their foe.

"You know what the hell that thing is?!" Samus shouted at Pikachu.

Apparently the orange dragon took offense to this and roared right in their face. Pikachu waved away some horrible smell, but Samus was concerned about bigger things. Like the dragon itself. The bounty hunter sprang into action, whipping out her Paralyzer and firing a shot directly at the creature. The gun did its work, paralyzing the creature with red electricity. Samus was about to head past it and check on everyone inside, but vines shot out, smacking her gun away and ensnaring her at the same time. Samus found herself dragged inside and Pikachu off her shoulder, only to come face to face with a strange blue and green creature, leering at her with red eyes. Samus noted that it strangely had a flower sprouting from its back.

Pikachu shouted in panic outside, dashing under the still shocked dragon and charging its electricity. "Pi kaaaaa…" That charge was short lived, since a reddish-brown turtle shell slammed into Pikachu and sent the creature careening right back outside. Pikachu quickly recovered, however, flipping back on its feet with a "Pika!"

The shell stopped spinning, revealing a blue turtle, which looked far less angry than his compatriots. "Squirtle squirt!" It seemed to beckon Pikachu for a fight.

"Pikaaa…" Pikachu snarled again.

"I've warned you…" A boyish voice came out. Samus momentarily stopped pushing off the vines enough to look towards the source of the voice. A youth, appearing somewhere around 13-14, emerged from the shadows of his own house, eyes hidden by the red and white cap on his head. "You Arume should leave my Pokemon alone. Otherwise this happens."

"I have news for you," Samus snarled, returning his stare. "I'm NOT an Arume!"

"Really?" The boy asked, doubt laced in his voice.

"Look into my eyes, kid," Samus instructed. As the boy wearily stepped closer, Samus continued. "Do I have blue pupils like they do? My eyes may have blue irises, but my pupils are black."

The boy leaned in, and sure enough, he saw she was telling the truth. "Ah… Ivysaur, let her go."

The blue green creature known as Ivysaur simply recalled its vines and Samus unceremoniously crashed onto the floor. Dusting herself off, Samus simply crossed her legs instead of standing up.

Now unfrozen, the dragon whirled and stomped back towards Samus, but the boy simply said, "Charizard, stop." Despite the burning rage inside its eyes, the dragon, now known as Charizard, relented. Pikachu and the turtle scampered inside, the latter slightly disappointed that the fighting was over. Pikachu stood by Samus, while the turtle stood next to the boy.

While Samus wanted to know what the hell all these creatures were, she had a more pressing question. "What did those guards want with you?"

"They want my Pokemon for something. I don't know what, but I don't want them to have them," The boy clenched his fist.

"Pokemon?" Samus raised an eyebrow. She thought back to the creatures she saw in that lab. Were they…

"The creatures here with me," The boy solemnly answered. Pikachu perked up, catching his attention. "That Pikachu… reminds me of another Pikachu I once met."

"Pika…" The Pikachu looked at the boy, and its eyes watered. Apparently this boy struck a chord with its memories as well.

"So you remember that clown Ash and his Pikachu too?" The boy asked the creature, to which it nodded. He then looked at Samus. "You recently ran into him?"

"Yeah…" Seeing this, Samus's voice reflected her wonder. "So you _do_ hail from the same planet. I had some questions about that, since this little guy wound up at my doorstep. Firstly, how do you know about him? All my scans don't even tell me what he eats."

"As you said, that Pikachu and I hail from the same world. He is one of many types of Pokemon, the creatures that encompass the world I come from," The boy explained as if telling history. "Many Pokemon are warriors, able to control the elements or possess superior physical strength, and that Pikachu is no exception. They enjoy fighting, and the humans on our world enjoy watching, so a mutual bond was formed between us."

"I've seen that," Samus commented. "It's a long story."

"I'm a Pokemon Trainer—I specialize in training them to fight," The boy smiled, lifting his head and revealing soft brown eyes. "Call me Red."

Samus stood up. "Samus Aran at your service." Pikachu hopped on her shoulder. "Looks like he's already fond of me, so I guess I can't give him up, huh?"

"Not a good idea. He's already taking a liking to you," Red answered.

Charizard, who had done nothing else up to this point, snorted.

"Pika?" Pikachu looked at the dragon, but it merely raised its eyebrow right back, as if saying "Got a problem with me?" The electric rat hopped off Samus and scampered towards its bigger compatriot. It asked a question with a rather animated chord of "pikas".

Charizard roared briefly in response, then sneered down at Pikachu, showing off its sharp teeth.

Pikachu returned that sneer and thumped its tiny chest, as if accepting a challenge.

Squirtle and Ivysaur, seeing this exchange, scampered over towards the other two and went to town. There was much excited Pokemon chatter, and Samus didn't understand a lick of it. She looked to Red. "You speak weeaboo?"

"Nope. Don't even know what that word means."

"Me neither."

"But if it's the Pokemon you're talking about, I think Pikachu's volunteered to fight Charizard for stress relief," Red offered his answer.

_Should've said that in the first place_, Samus mentally added, before talking aloud, "I'll have to think about that," She switched the subject. "So I take it even if you can't understand what they say, you can understand what they do?"

"Yeah. It's how a bond between a Pokemon and his or her trainer works. Pikachu's your Pokemon now," Red smiled again. "You'll learn a lot of things with him by your side. It's often best just to keep going your own path, and your Pokemon will follow you."

"I'll keep that in mind," Samus said. She looked over to see that the four Pokemon were still talking excitedly to each other, whether they were trading stories about how many Arume they trashed before showing up here or what happened last on Crobatman, she never knew. One thing, however still bugged her. "Umm… random question. What does Pikachu eat?"

"I bet he likes ketchup."

"Wait _what_."

Red realized he still had a lot of explaining to do.

* * *

"Greetings, Samus," Adam addressed the woman as she entered the room, carrying a large bag of food for her new companion. Pikachu scampered in and immediately perched himself beside the computer. "Ike left five minutes ago."

"_Five minutes ago_?! I've been gone for an hour!" Samus exclaimed.

"He _really_ wanted to know what those other buttons did."

Samus sighed and shook her head. "Wow, he really is clueless…"


	6. Episode 5: Undercurrent

**Metroid Blue**

**Episode 5: Undercurrent**

Ever since her encounter with Bowser, Samus Aran realized just how boring this colony _wasn't_.

* * *

"Where's the cake?!" An obnoxious voice shouted. Samus, so irritated by said voice, immediately halted her patrol and walked right inside the restaurant where the grating noise could be heard. It was there she saw a short, stout man with a jagged mustache arguing with an Arume chef. His blue-jean biker outfit didn't quite match his yellow cap, which held a large "W" on it.

"Goddammit, stop shouting!" The Arume complained. "The cake is right there!"

"You said there would be cake!" The annoying man continued ranting.

The Arume chef had enough. Clutching her head in frustration, she simply hissed, "Just pick one you… you… DOUBLE HORIME!" She emphasized those last two words by pointing dramatically at the short man.

The unpleasant man's mouth gaped in a comedic show of flabbergast.

Samus swore that the random air system blowing was NOT symbolic for some unknown joke flying right over her head.

The two or three other non-Arume people in the restaurant simply tensed.

In any case the short man harrumphed and dropped out of his chair. "The service here stinks! Like my ass." He promptly cut the cheese in a loud and obnoxious manner before storming out. There was a massive awkward silence before Samus quietly noted that 'horime' is not a word to use to the non-Arume residents. Despite this though, Samus didn't like the look that man had; he might be back. He'd certainly _looked_ like he was up to no good…

* * *

Then, there was one particular visit to Lieutenant Zael that week.

Zael always seemed to have some sort of strange fascination with her. As she heard from others under the woman's employ, the mere Lieutenant seemed to spend more time talking to the almighty Samus Aran than she did anyone else. So why was this visit different?

One answer: Lirael.

It was all Samus could do to hide her immense shock upon seeing the woman inside the office when Samus was summoned one day. Zael was at attention; apparently Lirael was even more important than she thought—and Samus knew she was real damn important! "Samus," Zael instructed. "Please meet Master Commander Lirael. She is the head of this colony and one of its founders."

Samus bowed, hoping to high Metroid heaven she didn't give herself away. "Samus Aran, precinct officer."

"Pleased to meet you," Lirael greeted kindly. She stole a glance at Zael before turning back to Samus, her face serious. "The reason I'm here is because we need to transport a notorious felon to a containment lab, and we need extra, shall we say, woman power. I was told those who serve under Zael are rather diligent. Are you interested in helping me?"

_Labs, huh?_ Samus pondered mentally. _I can see what you're up to__** elsewhere**_, "Count me in, Master Commander!" She answered with a salute.

Lirael giggled. "I'm glad that you're interested. We'll be transporting King Bowser in two cycles' time. Report to the front of this station at Light Rise," She turned around, a small smile on her face, said, "And don't be late!" and walked back out, leaving Samus and Zael in silence.

There was a moment of silence as Samus mentally sighed in relief. The woman seemed none the wiser of her identity. "Fascinating, isn't she?" Zael's voice almost startled Samus. The bounty hunter turned back to the Arume lieutenant who had sat back down, her fingers folded. "She is the most important person in this colony, yet she took the time to come all the way down here just to speak with us. She really connects with the people, doesn't she?"

_If by people you mean anyone who's Arume, then…_ Samus quipped mentally. "Sure," she answered. After giving Zael a proper salute, the woman turned away. "But I wonder just how much respect she has for us 'horime'…"

There was a slight twitch of irritation from the lieutenant, though Samus could barely tell it was there. "You'll see first hand won't you?" Zael waved off any potential underlying meanings. "Don't worry over it." Samus could only hold back a huff as she left that day.

* * *

But perhaps most of all was the unusual encounter she had with not one, not two, but three separate individuals the night before she was supposed to head off to transport the Koopa King.

About now, the light cycle had come to an end, and Ozora city lights lit the streets like the stars in space. Samus was officially off the clock, so to speak, but that didn't stop her from patrolling the city streets, even if it was more to absorb the sights around her than it was to keep the peace. Then, something caught her eye—that quaint restaurant she saw earlier that week. Still curious about how the Arume treat others, Samus decided to stroll on in.

Inside, a busy restaurant greeted her. Waitresses dashed from table to table, taking orders for customers. Conversations buzzed on every table. The kitchen was loud enough that she could hear the various sounds of food sizzling and pots clashing. It was a good while before she was seated at a simple two person booth and a moment after that before she noticed the waitress in front of her seat.

"Welcome! Tifael at your service!" The teenager-like Arume took a slightly nervous curtsy, her side ponytail bobbing slightly. "How may I serve you?" Samus noticed the girl's cheeks were unusually pale. Was she sick, or...

Samus merely raised an eyebrow before going on with a simple order for a drink. That cut the paling look of that girl instantly, and the waitress moved out to fulfill her order. Guess things weren't bad here after all...

...but that was before she noticed things.

Things like the suggestive stares she (or any female in the restaurant) received from the Arume, or the fact that most males kept largely to themselves. Maybe the fact that there wasn't a single male and female pairing in the entire restaurant. But mostly those stares.

Especially from one Tifael.

"Tifael would be p-p-proud to serve you in more than one way!" She quickly stuttered, as if she were under pressure from someone else to say those words. Samus raised an eyebrow, but let it slide. Even though she now realized she was in extremely dangerous territory, she could leave unscathed as long as she didn't make any sudden movements.

Too bad someone else decided to ruin the party. The fake tranquil was ruined with the entrance of a short, fat man in lavender tights! Nobody noticed his rather badass entrance into the restaurant because they were too busy trying to keep their eyes from bleeding. The fat man stood. With a swirl of his garlic-print-laden cape, the man boldly proclaimed, "At last, the great Wario Man is here!" Of course, his name gave absolutely no clue to his real identity. When the crowd began to exchange confused and worried murmurs, he then said, "No need to be worried, just surrender all of your cake and nobody will be harmed!"

"Knew he'd be back!" Samus muttered, standing up. Luckily for her, she had just the weapon for dealing with him. Aiming straight at the caped menace, she screamed, "FREEZE!"

The great Wario Man only looked at her, his facial expression unchanged. A second passed, and the man was already in Samus's face! "You can't stop me!" The great Wario Man proclaimed. "PummelpummelpummelpummelPUMMEL!" There was a flurry of punches from the fat man, and Samus was sent crashing outside.

The bounty hunter groaned in pain. Rising tenderly from the bed of shattered glass, Samus shook all the fog out of her brain. The horrified yet childish yells of the women inside brought her back to reality. There were a few others who tried to pull the police act like she did, but her ears picked up their swift defeats as well. "Hmph... Looks like I'll have to play super hero for a short bit..." Samus rose. She grabbed that accursed watch on her wrist, and standing up, hissed, "Chozo Suit Activate!" And with a flash of green light, Samus was once again the Hunter.

"Grrgh, now look what he made me do!" Samus complained silently, despite it being completely her fault she now 'activates' her Chozo Suit. But that no longer mattered. Samus boldly strolled right back into the restaurant. It was there that the currently unstoppable Wario Man was feasting on some poor, unlucky Arume's cake—sitting on top of a hapless Tifael. Try as she might, the Arume girl couldn't move the caped crusader off of her.

"Hey you." Samus's voice cut through the chaos, leaving only silence.

There was a brief moment as all eyes locked onto the enigmatic suit before them, but it was the nasty short man that spoke. "Tryin' to get my cake, are you? Wait your turn! These Arume won't serve us manly men any cake, so I will take it from them!"

"Got news for you: two wrongs don't make a right," Samus aimed her cannon at Wario Man. She decided to take a quick scan of the caped crusader while she was at it.

'_Subject is quite obviously Wario, transformed and empowered by raw garlic. Wario Man's buffed strength and agility make him a formidable foe, but he is no more durable than your average super human. Subject passes foul and explosive gas; do not use missiles against him in enclosed areas.'_

"I got news for _you_." The great Wario Man smirked. "Three rights make a left!"

Samus smacked her palm to her face from the awful pun, but suddenly— "Absorbable technology detected."

"Huh?" Samus blinked at the words flashing on her visor. Indeed, one of the fallen cops' taser weapons was limp on the floor. The scan blared that its technology could be copied. Samus aimed her cannon at it...

"No funny movements, or the lass I'm sitting on gets the motherload of bad gas!" Wario Man threatened. Wow, way to foul up the air with suspension.

"Eeeep!" Tifael squealed, but she was still not strong enough to shake the dangerous fat man off of her.

The air was still tense as Samus carefully planned her next move. With somebody hostage, and the hostage taker likely to go back on his word, Samus had to move fast. That absorption power finally began to work...

Samus felt the power seep into her suit. It was finally ready.

'Thunder Missiles Online.'

_Oh nice, elemental missiles! Let's see what one __**does**_, Without hesitation, Samus tested her new toy by firing a direct shot on Wario Man.

-BANG- A direct, electrified shot knocked Wario clean off Tifael, allowing the Arume lass to make her escape. The waitress scampered up on a nearby table and out of the way to see what would transpire.

"What?!" Wario Man recovered immediately, flipping back onto his feet. "I underestimated you! But not for long!" He started charging towards the bounty hunter like a football player, delivering a massive shoulder tackle to Samus and sending her careening across the floor. He took an immediate leap into the air, hoping to land down and smash the hunter further. No luck there, Samus flipped out of harm's way at the last moment.

"HA!" Samus shoved her cannon arm forward, delivering a heavy blow to the caped crusader. The man stumbled back, but only for a moment. He countered with a flurry of punches, which Samus could barely guard against.

The Wario Man moved his fist back for a stronger punch...

_Oh__** crap**_, Samus's survival instinct told her absorbing the blow was a bad idea. She back-flipped out of harm's way as Wario Man's fist slammed into a wall, leaving a nasty crack. The man removed his fist and lunged towards the bounty hunter yet again. Samus evaded this move by hopping over a table, but he crashed right into it, shattering it into splinters.

Samus took advantage of his stalled attack by launching two Thunder missiles. Unfortunately, the greedy Wario Man saw the attack coming this time. Opening his wide mouth, he gobbled up both missiles like afternoon snacks.

"Hey, that's not even fair!" Samus snarled. To counter this she began charging her charge shot...

The great Wario Man flashed an impossibly toothy white grin before winding up his arm. "Lemme show you what I'm REALLY capable of!" The plump man began to twirl before leaping into the air and practically flying towards her, accelerating to dangerous speeds.

"Hmph," was Samus's only response as she dodged Wario Man's crazy charge. The caped crusader swirled back and charged again, but this time Samus was ready. With one mighty shove her arm cannon rammed into the fat man, negating his charge. They continued to push into each other for some time until Wario Man flipped away, landing on his feet. Samus ceased her own attack but kept her weapon trained on the man, weary of what he was about to do.

Wario Man puffed himself up and bellowed, "LET ME SHOW YOU A STINK OF A LIFETIME!" He turned around his rear end poised to let out a massive amount of gas, and bring about the end of the world. Maybe not the _world_, but…

Samus would have none of that. "I DON'T THINK SO!" She let out the massive charge blast she had been saving, mere seconds before Wario let it rip. The volatile forces collided, resulting in an explosion…

…too close to Wario Man.

"AI YAI YAIII YAAAHHHH!" The intrepid Wario Man was now his very own rocket, sailing through the roof and out of the restaurant, towards the outer edge of the colony. "WWAAAAAHHHHH!" He disappeared at the outer edge of the colony with a –ding-.

Samus, quite disturbed at the progress of events, merely stared, with eyebrow raised and twitching, until a slow clapping was heard. Samus shook herself out of her disturbed state and turned to see… Tifael clapping. The young Arume clapped alone for a moment, but other Arume soon joined her, and seconds later she was getting a standing ovation from the entire restaurant. Thinking back, Samus realized this was only the second time she was widely celebrated for her feats…

"Hey, you were awesome for showing that obnoxious horime a thing or two!" The Arume cook she saw the other day smiled at her. "You could be a regular hero, you know that?"

Samus wasn't exactly sure what to think here. On one hand, Wario really _was_ obnoxious. On the other hand their treatment of him before he went off the deep end wasn't that much better. This too merited investigation… what she had to understand to make her best move just kept on piling up. "Perhaps," She toughened up her voice before facing the cook. "But I'm just a Hunter, looking for a bounty."

Too bad the recovering Arume cops in the vicinity FINALLY recognized her. "You…" Knowing the Hunter, as she called herself, was well armed, all of them gathered their weapons before quickly attempting to surround her. "FREEZE!"

"Unsung heroes, huh?" The cook chuckled nervously.

"Until next time," Samus gave a mock salute at her audience before bursting out the door at full speed and moving into the 'night', with the Arume cops in hot pursuit.

There was a moment of awkward silence. That was, until— "Tifael is intrigued!" The girl was rubbing her chin thoughtfully. She was about to sprint off after the action, but the Arume cook merely grabbed her collar as the girl fruitlessly attempted to escape. "T-t-Tifael is lucky she gets off work in an hour!"

The Arume cook sighed. "Don't make it two."

* * *

Three long, frantic hours later, Samus wearily marched up the stairs to her apartment. Shaking them off had proven to be harder than she initially thought. Who knew the comedy act of being chased in what looked like _clown cars_ could be so effective?! Hey wait, were those even _Arume_ clown cars?

"Geez, I take back anything I said or will say about this place being boring," Samus muttered. Content nobody else was in the vicinity, she removed her helmet and slid open the door.

"Pika!" A yellow furball launched itself into Samus's arm.

"Hey little guy, you already miss me?" Samus was pleasantly surprised that the rodent was already attached to her. Considering her past luck with animals—hell, even that one Metroid larva—maybe she shouldn't have been. As Samus rubbed Pikachu's head, the latter's ears suddenly pricked, and he jumped onto Samus's shoulder.

"Pika?" He looked around for a moment before spotting something. "PIKA!" He shouted as if he had just been assassinated.

"What?!" Samus picked up his urgency and immediately scanned her surroundings.

"Pika…" Pikachu pointed a horrified finger down on the ground.

Samus looked apprehensively, following Pikachu's tiny finger until her eyes saw…

…a pink puffball.

Said pink puffball merely stared back with dark eyes, stubby arms, and red shoes, but for some reason Pikachu was mortified of its presence. Samus, on the other hand, saw no threat just yet. "Eh…"

"Hi!" It said cutely, waving its arms. If sugar shock could kill, Samus would be giblets.

"What."

It was then that the proverbial crap hit the fan. "Ah, Kirby!" A familiar voice called. It was Samus's turn for mortification when Tifael appeared above the steps and scooped up the pink creature in her arms. "Tifael told you not to go wandering about at night! Those unscrupulously lame militants might be around!" She then saw Samus, helmet removed. "Eh?"

"…" Samus stared in blank horror.

"You… you're from the restaurant, aren't you?!"

"…god… _dammit_."

(As a warning: it is my wish to involve every playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl at some point in this story, but since not everyone is fond of spoilers, you will only see one chapter between now and the game's release on March 9th--or whatever date they release it for the Americas. Sit tight until then, mmkay?)


	7. Episode 6: Tifael

**Metroid Blue**

**Episode 6: Tifael**

"You…" There she was, a mere Arume teenager, seeing Samus's face for the first time. Normally, this would be no problem, but alas there was that small glaring issue of her attack on Wario earlier and being both a caped superhero and a wanted criminal at the same time. "You're from the restaurant earlier, aren't you?"

And now some girl just caught her with the mask off.

There was a moment of shocked silence as Samus wondered what to do. Unfortunately for her, Tifael's face paled as if she were blushing. She slowly picked up Kirby before suddenly bolting back down the stairs.

"What... oh shi—!" It took a second before Samus realized the dire implications of Tifael running away. "Pikachu!" She quickly fixed on her helmet as she sped down the stairs, with the electric rat in hot pursuit. She sailed down another flight of stairs before spotting Tifael flee into an apartment. Steeling herself, Samus sprinted towards the apartment and barged right in.

Strangely enough, it was Pikachu who spoke first upon intruding in the apartment. Boldly pointing a tiny finger at Tifael, the creature shouted, "Pika pi, pika PIKA!"

But instead of any sort of shock from the random invasion, Kirby merely scratched his head in confusion.

Tifael, on the other hand, was faster on the uptake. "...you're that electric creature who's a criminal too! Oh dear, Tifael never expected this! She's seen too much! Tifael is going to be kidnapped and kept quiet until they're done with their nefarious deeds!" Except maybe not, since she seemed more embarrassed than worried about her current situation, and was even slightly sashaying in delight.

Samus sighed in frustration. "Sounds more like a fantasy than reality." To which Pikachu added a "Pika!" in agreement. "But in any case, I can't rest easy until I know your intentions."

"Eh? Is that so?" Tifael looked somewhat surprised. "T-t-Tifael hasn't prepared at all! Tifael doesn't have any of the pills or anything we could play with! And Kirby can't watch this either!"

This was completely lost on Samus. "What the _hell_ are you talking about?!"

Tifael blinked. "You mean you aren't here to take Tifael's virginity?"

"_What_?!" Samus's mental train crashed into a wall!

"_Pika_?!" Pikachu's mental train... fell off a cliff!

Kirby's mental train... appeared to still be chugging along in confusion.

"What kind of _ridiculous_ goddamn idea is that?!" Samus demanded.

"Pika." Pikachu hopped off of Samus and waved off the entire thing, as if admitting defeat.

Unfortunately Tifael did not take that well. Her eyes welled up in tears, though she tried her hardest to control it, and sniffled. "Ti... Tifael should've known you didn't swing that way!" She cried. She crumpled down to the ground for added effect.

It had little effect on the frustrated Samus, but that was until the bounty hunter noticed the determined and vengeful glint of the pink puffball. Only seconds before it was too late, Samus swung her gun arm to block the swing of a random star-print hammer. "Tch!" Samus hissed as she had to struggle to keep Kirby from walloping her. It appeared that even if Kirby knew nothing of perversion, he surely knew sadness. Let there be mercy for anyone who makes anyone Kirby cares about sad.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu literally leapt to Samus's rescue; it sailed into the air and smashed Kirby into a wall with its tail. The electric rat landed, snarling and ready for battle.

"Pikachu... hold on," Samus chose this time to take the obligatory scan of her opponent(s), tapping her visor to activate the process.

_'Subject identified as Kirby. Creature's unstable DNA allows it to imitate the powers or technology of many things it swallows. This versatile creature is normally calm and lazy, but when provoked or given good cause it is a rather cunning and extremely vengeful warrior. Once again it is advised that you do not underestimate its small size and helpless looks.'_

_And hey look, it's doing it now!_ Samus observed Kirby suck in Pikachu and immediately assimilate its powers into its own moves. While she was tempted to launch several missiles in Kirby's general direction, she felt that it would be much better to simply let Pikachu fight it out. She stuck to watching the fight intently.

After stumbling out of some unknown orifice, Pikachu shook himself to recover from the shock and shot a blast of electricity at Kirby. The pink creature decided two could play that game and shot some back, and the attacks were negated. "Pika?!" Pikachu stepped back in shock from fighting his own attack.

"He can imitate your moves! Try something different!" Samus commanded the rat.

Pikachu nodded, then focused his electricity again. Kirby lunged for him, but Pikachu jumped back. The electric rat twisted his body before spinning in what looked like an electric breakdance, smashing Kirby away. The poor thing crashed and bounced up, but quickly recovered. Kirby once again lunged, but this time it landed on its head and spun its feet around, clipping Pikachu's torso and knocking it back slightly. It followed up with a nasty lunge kick that Pikachu evaded at the last second.

"Pika!" Pikachu leapt into the air, his cheeks shining with electricity before he slammed into the ground, narrowly missing Kirby. Of course, the pink puffball answered that with a mighty swing of his hammer, smacking Pikachu away.

The rat slid uncomfortably across the floor, only flipping back on his feet when it neared a wall. Kirby reappeared in front of him and tried to smash its foot in Pikachu's face. However, the electric mouse twirled its body in an evasive maneuver before lashing its tail out, hitting Kirby away.

Still snarling, Pikachu stood on all fours.

Kirby too, stood up for another attack.

All that ended when a now steely Tifael slammed a hammer of her own between the two, even startling Samus into aiming her gun at the Arume. "That's enough." Tifael said sternly.

"..." Samus straightened herself. "Now I really have to ask... who are you?"

All eyes turned to the Arume, who stood far more boldly now than she had all night. "My name is and will always be Tifael. That's no lie." Kirby trotted back towards Tifael as the girl continued to speak. "Tifael wishes to protect this young one," she picked up Kirby again. "...and that is why Tifael is here now."

"Are you sure he needs protection?" Samus raised an eyebrow under her helmet. "He fought Pikachu toe-to-toe. This looks more like an excuse to keep him because he's cute."

"Tifael makes no pretenses of that!" Tifael shot back hotly, her cheeks flushed with a ghost-like embarrassment. "Tifael is very aware Kirby is cute!" She sagged down, however. "Tifael knows you don't trust me, or anyone on this colony. Perhaps now Tifael should tell you a story."

It was something sudden for this shy, strange girl to suddenly be so serious. Samus was so intrigued by this offer, she removed her helmet. "Really? Will it be the story of why Tifael always talks in the third person?"

"Tifael is serious!" The girl countered, her voice strong but still holding that shy childishness she had earlier.

Samus Aran could only hold back a smirk. Deciding that the threat was over, she shed her suit in a bright flash of light. The lady then sat down, eyes intent on Tifael—for all of five seconds. Those daunting blue eyes STILL got to her, it seemed. Pikachu, on the other hand, didn't care. It scampered into Samus's lap and stared at Kirby. Kirby innocently returned said stare with a wide-eyed look, no longer considering Pikachu an enemy.

"Tifael still thinks you look beautiful..." The Arume said, barely above a whisper. However, upon seeing Samus's face contort and ready a reply, she changed course. "...but enough about that. You want to know why we're here, among other things."

Samus nodded in agreement, and even Pikachu was listening intently.

"It all began many years ago. We, the Arume, had actually been monitoring Earth for some time before we launched our attack. You see, we had been seeking an answer to a problem that had been plaguing us for sometime—the extinction of the Arume male, and the erosion of our environment. Our technology is the sole reason we're still around, and with long lifespans to boot.

"Tifael was part of the military too. Tifael believed back then we would take what we need and get out. But we had been purely women for so long, few of us really desired to reintroduce males back into our race, and ironically, Tifael is no exception. Also our old world was dying, so ruling this new world without bloodshed seemed like a shiny deal. "

"So that's why you like me," Samus said with slight uncertainty. She also had to wonder how Tifael could have ever had military discipline considering her personality, but then she thought back to Lirael, and figured quite a few Arume had personalities that betrayed their strength. Maybe this was universal balance talking... "You Arume felt pretty satisfied with world conquest, so why did you build this colony? And why are there males on it, if you disliked them so much?"

"Tifael is getting to that!" The girl held up a finger, as to remind Samus about patience. Samus almost grit her teeth at the display but decided to let it slide. "It was ten years ago that a strange, metallic comet shot by that planet. Tifael had quit the military then, and wished to settle down, if only for a while. The military saw fit to remodel that comet into this very colony we stand on, and by invitation, Tifael was called to this place by her military friends. This place is run by the military, but much to Tifael's horror they've been using the power on this colony to spread to other worlds and kidnap peoples from those worlds. Tifael could not let this nightmare stand, but alas, Tifael is not strong enough to oppose this group on her own."

Samus's face grew serious. "You mean to tell me your military's been all over the galaxy right under Galactic Federation noses?! _Shit_," Samus sank. "All along Adam's been telling me I can't just pick a fight because of some political tension..."

"Whoever told you that is entirely correct. Because of the lack of evidence any intergalactic party can't touch the Arume without being made the aggressor." Tifael plainly stated.

"_Pika_." The electric mouse said his equivalent of the word _damn_.

"Took the word right out of my mouth," Samus added, absentmindedly rubbing Pikachu's head. She stole a glance at the pink puffball, who's face had slightly gone back to that determined look right before it attacked her. "Is Kirby one of the kidnapped ones as well?"

"There are some who came to this colony on their own. Kirby is one such brave soul. The little guy came looking for friends of his," Tifael looked down at the cute thing in her lap. "Tifael couldn't let him fall into military clutches, so Tifael has kept him here at night while she's at work and helps him look by day."

"That so," Samus said. Each and every lead led her closer to understanding what was going on. She stood, with Pikachu scampering to her shoulder as she did so. "I wish it were easy to say that your military's going down, but I still don't understand a few things, and as I am now, I lack the firepower to knock them down a few pegs."

"Tifael believes you can become stronger," the Arume suddenly stood tall, causing Kirby to tumble out and crash into the floor. "Both inside and outside that suit."

Samus paused. This was the first time in a very long time a civilian (even if said civilian WAS ex-military) had remarked that she had potential. Much less the fact that she's getting this comment from an Arume. Maybe not all of them were bad news... "...Thanks," Samus said. With that she walked for the door and opened it, stepping outside. "I guess I'll come back and visit. You helped me get on the right track, at least."

There was that blush again. "T-Tifael is honored!"

Kirby came out and peeked from beside the girl. "Bye bye!" It cheerfully waved.

"Please come back! Tifael promises to be ready to lose her virginity!"

Samus almost crashed, but recovered just in time as she went back upstairs. "Don't try your luck!" She shouted as she sprinted out of earshot.

* * *

"Having more off-road adventures again, Lady?" Adam's voice rang as she and Pikachu entered their apartment once more.

"Ensuring my secret stays just that is tougher than I thought," Samus answered, plumping down in her seat.

"I should probably remind you that light rise for the colony occurs in two hours." Adam stated.

"Two hours?!" Samus bolted up again. "It's hardly been two thirds of the regular night cycle!"

"Piiii," Pikachu was already waving it off and going to dreamland. Apparently electric rats did not give a damn about other people's sleeping schedules.

"It's occurring earlier today, reports say the Agriculture Sector needs a bit of strength."

"Dammit, I'm getting no good sleep tonight," Samus muttered. "I think I'll need to get my hands on some heavy grade coffee."

"That may not be necessary, Samus," Adam chimed in. "Your upgrade dock also functions as instant restoration," As if on cue, the station installed in her home glowed, as if beckoning her to step in it once more. "You can get a full night's rest in just an hour."

"...sounds good," Samus answered.

"...but you'll still be hungry."

Samus smacked her palm in her face. "This is relevant why?"

"No reason at all, Lady."

Samus stepped inside the machine, standing tall and letting the machine's waves relax her body. "Rest well, Samus," she heard Adam. "The mission will no longer be easy from here on out."

"Already knew that, but thanks anyway," Samus answered while she was still coherent. Indeed, Adam's words were true—this is where the real fight would begin.

(As promised, the very last chapter you'll see before March 9th. Hang tight guys, it's only 23 days at the time I'm writing this! Bonus note: there IS a reason Tifael has her third person speaking hijinks--that will be answered in a later chapter. I should also note Tifael is an original creation of mine, even if the Arume are not.)


	8. Episode 7: Zero Containment Center

**Metroid Blue**

**Episode 7: Zero Containment Center**

Several stony Arume soldiers, one Lirael and one Samus Aran had gathered around the containment cell carrying Bowser. Thanks to their destination being on the opposite side of the colony, their cargo had to be loaded on a special freight train devoid of ordinary citizens. Even through the small windows the train was equipped with, the beginning of the colony's light cycle shined bright, even imitating the heat of a nearby sun.

Up until now, Samus never understood the reason that this colony had actual day/night cycles instead of schedules, but research done earlier had pulled up that a few divisions in the colony relied on such a cycle to maximize growth of several varieties of food. The designers of this colony apparently thought of EVERYTHING.

And now EVERYTHING included a cold containment center to keep guys like Bowser in check. Despite being here for two weeks now, Samus still had much to learn, and the Chozo blood within her was craving that learning experience. Luckily for her, Lieutenant Zael had not only given her the day to spend with Lirael's top force, but a week before she had to report back on duty. This gave her plenty of time to investigate the colony further and see what the Arume could hope to accomplish.

But perhaps most of all, she wanted proof that not every Arume in the universe were but heartless creatures that lusted after women. Tifael couldn't be the only one.

Right?

"Suraiel, Samus," the voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she turned to face Lirael. The commander was gazing out the window of the freight train they were traveling on. This 'Suraiel' lady, who was talking rather animatedly to a few subordinates, stopped the conversation and turned to Lirael. She rivaled Samus in height, and unlike the other Arume soldiers wore black. Lirael gazed at the two of them. "Keep your eyes peeled. There are those who would like to free Bowser from his prison, more to strike us down than the care about his actual freedom."

"Huh?" This Suraiel raised an eyebrow. "Why go to such great lengths just to spite us, ze?"

_Might have something to do with Arume galactic domination and no regard for other species_, Samus quipped mentally, but instead offered, "It might be that Bowser actually has a lot of connections."

"Perhaps, we'll look into it once he's contained," Lirael answered before going back to gazing out the window. The train continued on in silence.

Samus noticed a rather sad look to Lirael, but it was Suraiel that actually commented on it—probably something to do with being higher on the food chain. "Yo Master Commander! Why the long face?"

"Ah!" Lirael's face contorted into surprise before smiling lightly. She went back to gazing as she simply answered, "Memories..." The train returned to awkward silence.

The train ride stayed relatively uneventful until Samus's eyes caught something. "Who's that?" She noted somebody perched on a tower, his keen eyes observing them as they moved into the large base. Holy wings fluttered on his back—he resembled an angel.

"He says his name is Pit," Lirael explained. "He serves Lady Palutena, someone who has recently taken residence here." There was a touch of amusement in her voice.

"That sounds like she came here uninvited," Samus remarked. "Did she... Master Commander?"

"Of course she did!" Suraiel complained, throwing up her arms in exasperation. "Some upstart horime moving in, thinking they own the place and killing everybody in sight..." Lirael stifled a giggle as she noticed the woman's nose was bleeding.

Samus mentally grimaced, but then decided to counter. "So Commander, if this 'upstart horime' killed everybody, then how are you still here?"

"Simple: I'm good at dodgin', ze." Suraiel proudly boasted, wiping away that blood. Samus decided to ignore that and turn back to Lirael.

However, it seemed that Lirael was already going to answer Samus's earlier question. "Rumor has it she is a former goddess. Perhaps it would be foolish of us to doubt that... I saw her power for myself. As for Pit, he is her most loyal servant, dedicated and strong for her cause." Lirael rose up as the train slowed to a stop. "I believe she gave him to us as an envoy perhaps. But enough about that," She swirled her cape dramatically. "We're at our destination. Let's move Bowser to his prison."

"Understood!" Samus barked with the other soldiers. As she moved to secure the King of Koopas, she thought back to their earlier conversation and realized that her questions about Pit weren't really answered—they spent all their time talking about Palutena!

* * *

"You should be honored, Aran," Suraiel patted Samus on the back, making her wince slightly. "We don't show this place to too many people, Arume or no." The prison they were carting Bowser to was just one part of a military complex. There were several weapons of all types including guns, missile launchers and even energy swords.

Samus had to strain to keep the wonder out of her features. "What's this place for?"

"Aran, you do know that this colony is largely military, right?" Suraiel raised an eyebrow.

"Had an idea, yes."

"Indeed, we're kinda new to this galaxy, and policing the earth and all that isn't an easy job. So we got this!" The taller Arume pointed her hand at the base. "Even though we're still outnumbered with common Arume citizens, our force is still pretty large so we can respond to all sorts of things."

Samus had a question about that, but yet again Lirael was faster on the draw. "We're building up strength to look further into the galaxy. As our prison cell will show you, Bowser is just one of many threats we came across."

"Huh..." Samus mused as they all moved into an elevator. Lirael touched the button to the basement, and they began their quick and silent descent to lock Bowser away.

* * *

"Amazin', huh?" Suraiel boasted.

As far as high tech prisons go, this one took the cake. It was a large, circular place arranged in a cylindrical style for about three floors, with a shorter floor at the very bottom. Separate prisons made to contain different types of troublemakers—like for instance, this cell right in front of her. It was bigger than those around it, and she could feel the cold air as it blasted out from the cell. "Amazing indeed."

"Bowser's a reptile, or at least has close enough anatomy to one, so he can't pull any fast ones on us in this cold room!"

_It's not like he was fast in the first place_, Samus thought back to their fight last week. Her wandering eyes spotted two other doors other than the ones they arrived from, and one was strangely at the bottom floor. She furrowed her brow at this, but Lirael interrupted those thoughts.

"That's correct," Lirael added to Suraiel's proclamation. The group of soldiers shoved him in before tapping some keys on the outside lock, sealing him in. "Many of these rooms are designed to adjust temperature an moisture to make prisoners to lethargic to escape." Seeing as Bowser was safely inside the cell and everyone else was accounted for, Lirael said. "Nice work. Thank you everyone for all of your work, it seems everything went without any problems. You can rest easy now and head back at your leisure."

Samus and the others saluted.

* * *

A while later, Samus found herself walking slowly out towards the end of the base. Remembering her week off, Samus decided a bit of small time investigation was in order.

...that was, if she could evade these lustful Arume long enough.

"Hey there, sweet thang!" One called out. "You single?"

"What a tragedy!" Another shouted. "It looks like she's got free time, and we don't!"

Samus raised her eyebrow, remembering what Tifael said about Arume nature. Now all of their stares and catcalls made sense. "I'm kinda honored you all think so highly of me," She wasn't exactly sure if this next trick would work, but it had to be worth a shot. "...but I'm already taken."

"Is that so?" They asked. "Depending on who they are, we might have to show you why we're better." Samus spotted one of them winking. This could possibly go in a very wrong direction.

So she thought of the first name that was on her mind, much to her chagrin. "Yeah. Her name's Tifael."

There was a shocked silence. This led to some meek murmuring and worried whispering, but by that time, Suraiel had come back. "Oh ho, you never told me about Tifael," the woman laughed. "I guess you managed to get past her new pet and into her heart. Best of luck to ya, ze. And as for _you ladies_," Suraiel turned back to the group of girls hitting on Samus. "The workplace is not your local date shop. _Get back to work_, ze!"

"Yes ma'am!" They all shouted, scurrying back to their posts as Suraiel barked more orders.

Samus silently thanked Suraiel before sprinting off, her mind nagging her about those doors in the prison...

* * *

Deep within the heart of the installation, Samus returned in her suited form. Stepping cautiously into a door, she began looking around, trying to find what exactly this research lab had compared to the last one.

The dark halls and glowing machinery almost felt like a familiar sight to Samus, but did little to assuage her natural apprehension. Then again, she didn't want that—it was how she kept on top of the game for so long. Her scanner was on full drive, assessing the technology around her.

She already knew this was an Arume military installation, the question was why. They didn't tell her during the tour, but the information Tifael gave last night pretty much proved that this was a base of operations for their attacks. The prisoners, the peoples from other worlds, kept separate from the Arume divisions of the base.

But there was just one thing.

The most curious thing... why was there a nigh hidden room buried deep within the prison? This was what Samus was going to investigate. She'd be just fine sneaking around without the suit, but experience said she'd be meeting Lirael again, so she decided to tackle it in a different fashion.

She dropped down into the bottom circular area where the door in question was. Luckily, she had not riled the mostly silent prisoners... up until now.

Just opposite of that door, something appeared in the only prison cell there. Despite her better judgment, Samus saw herself drawn to it.

Inside that cell was a small creature that reminded the bounty hunter of Kirby, except with dark gray skin. With its jester-like cap and big eyes, it looked cute... in a demented sort of way. "Huh..." Samus breathed as it gazed at her with pleading eyes. However, she was weary of wolves in sheeps' clothing, so she took a scan.

_'Unknown creature likely from the same world as Kirby. DNA suggests it's hiding immense power and brain waves suggest it may be hiding a malignant nature. Heavier scan is recommended. Be weary when approaching this creature.'_

"Umm no thanks," Samus turned around to leave. But the strange creature wasn't about to let Samus go just yet!

With a childish grin, it produced a pocket watch and began to swing it in a hypnotic fashion. "You will free me... you will freeeee meeee..." It spoke.

Samus looked at it for a moment, eyebrow raised, before she turned away. "Not fooling me." She walked in the door, ignoring the pout from the creature.

Inside the rather vast room, Samus found herself looking in complete darkness. To amend that, she switched on a visor light and began to look around. What she spotted, however, gave her flashbacks her first lab visit.

This time there were Arume sealed in those tubes. As a matter of fact, there were Arume everywhere. All of them appearing to be synthetically produced in a systematic fashion.

There was no horror this time, however, just confusion. Were the Arume ALL synthetic, or was this just a special case? Samus thought back to Tifael's explanation that they went galaxy hunting to widen their gene pool, yet there were those who decided galactic conquest was the only way to accomplish this. Perhaps this was...

Instinct suddenly kicked in, and Samus whirled around, arm cannon ready. She saw nothing. However, it was only a few moments before that changed.

A single, young Arume flew in. Unlike the military outside, she seemed more pale, feathery, and strangely enough... beautiful. She lacked the common boots she saw, or any footwear at all, making her look something like a forlorn ghost. She spotted Samus, and with an usually sad smile, began to glide right towards her.

That apprehension Samus always felt intensified. She immediately began to try and scan the Arume before her as it drew closer. But even so, there was something about it...

Her sad eyes beckoned Samus so much that she didn't even read the results of her scan. It was all she could do but reach out and touch this sad soul as it reached for her...

-KABOOM-

The blast was so sudden it knocked Samus off her feet and away towards another wall. The woman took a moment to recover. "What... the HELL... was that?!" She said, the shock slowly leaving her system. Where that woman once was, there was nothing more than dissipating energy and ashes.

"I see you found the gosuta," a familiar voice echoed. Samus shot up and aimed her gun at the direction of that voice.

It was Lirael.

"They are some of our most beautiful soldiers," Lirael leapt down to Samus's level. She stood up, and with a serious swirl to the cloak she was wearing, continued. "The gosuta are synthetic Arume designed for self-sacrifice."

"Self-sacrifice?" Samus asked. "Suicide bombers?!"

"Such a harsh choice of words," Lirael answered modestly. "But yes."

Last time Samus checked, not even the Space Pirates used too many suicide tactics unless facing inevitable death. Samus asked. "They're living... Do they not have a conscience?"

"One develops over time. If we're not at war, they have the capability of living with ordinary citizens..." There was a bit of a wistful look in her eyes. "Alas, if necessary, they can be called back to serve their original purpose."

"That's lunacy, isn't it?" Samus refocused her aim on Lirael.

"That's not insanity, dear Hunter..." Lirael took a fighting stance. "Perhaps you do not understand our culture." The Arume commander charged.

"Maybe I don't then!" Samus countered with a Thunder missile, but Lirael swatted it out of the way. At least Samus was expecting it this time, as she readied herself for the Arume's assault. Lirael let a one-two punch fly, but Samus weaved between both attacks. "HA!" Samus shoved her arm cannon forward.

Lirael caught it yet again.

"Dammit, not again!" Samus yelled as Lirael happily slung her over and into another wall.

"Not a very fast learner, are you?" Lirael asked as she walked towards the fallen bounty hunter.

"That's not true," Samus waited until Lirael was close, then caught the girl by surprise with a well aimed flip kick to her face. "I came a bit more prepared this time."

Lirael staggered back. "You..."

"Heh, catch _this_," Samus fired two Thunder missiles this time, Lirael swatted the first, but the second clipped her, leaving a nasty shock. She crumpled to the ground as Samus advanced; the bounty hunter smashed her with a sweep kick for good measure. Lirael crashed unceremoniously into the ground again. "So..." Samus aimed her gun at Lirael. "Going to tell me why you're dashing all over the galaxy and kidnapping random people?"

"We are not _kidnapping_ people," Lirael hissed in response, grabbing her cloak. Samus reacted and shot a super missile...

...which turned out to be a bad move.

Lirael slung her cloak around the missile, whipped around, and sent the missile directly back at Samus. The resulting surprise hit from Samus sent her careening across the air and right back to where she entered the room, where she landed with a resounding -CRASH-.

"Good _god_," Samus flipped back on to her feet. "Hits like an Omega Pirate no matter what position she's in!"

"Save your tired lines!" Lirael shot towards where Samus was, briefly defying the gravity of the colony. She gracefully landed in front of Samus. "Cease this rebellious madness..."

"Hmm, I wonder where I heard _that_ line before," Samus muttered before aiming at her again. "Not quite yet." Samus deftly activated the door and let it slide open as she aimed a kick for Lirael. The Arume evaded the strike and lunged for one of her own. Samus crossed her arms to guard against the powerful running punch Lirael landed, but the hit was still strong enough to send her skidding backwards a bit. Samus aimed another missile at Lirael, but at the last second changed direction and shot it towards her feet. Lirael nearly shrieked as the blast forced her to jump up.

"Getting better already?!" Lirael shouted, her face flush with that pale thing called Arume embarrassment.

"I'm just getting warmed up," Samus smirked under her mask as she said that old cliché... that was until she noticed Lirael's face. Bad memories of Tifael and endless innuendo flooded her mind. "Ah, crap."

Lirael's eyes lit up when she spotted opportunity in the form of Samus's guard dropping. She sailed down and smashed Samus with a mighty kick...

...right onto the button that deactivated the only holding cell level with them.

Samus, still recovering from the attack, leaned her head back...

...and found herself staring into a growing blast of power. "Oh hell I just didn't..." She scrambled out of harm's way just in time to see a nightmarish blast of white energy tear through the base and blast a giant hole on the other side, narrowly missing Lirael.

Lirael's face contorted to horrified shock before she exchanged looks with an equally horrified Samus.

"Hehehehehehehe! I _told_ you you would free me!"

(Finally baX in action. Please don't tell me ffnet is doing the h8.8 again on double punctuation...  
Also apology to the guy who dislikes cliffhangers in a middle of a fight, but uhh... this guy I'm introducing demands it.)


End file.
